


Melting Point

by Filliam



Category: Sword Art Online (Anime & Manga)
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-08
Updated: 2019-04-08
Packaged: 2020-01-06 16:21:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,618
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18391988
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Filliam/pseuds/Filliam
Summary: The one thing Asuna can’t forget from their first meeting was Lis’s smile.





	Melting Point

**Author's Note:**

> SAO Pride Week is officially here! This is the fic I made for Day 1’s prompt, Virtual World VS Real World. This was an old WIP I revised for the event, so it’s a bit longer than some of the other stuff I’ll be posting in the coming days. Thanks to thegayfromrulid@tumblr for beta reading this.

_It doesn’t matter how much you fight here, you’re just changing on which floor you’ll die._

These were Asuna’s words.

While she thought differently nowadays, traces of such ideas still lingered in her thoughts.  _You’ll die here_ , something deep down whispered. _This virtual castle will be your grave, and the ‘strong swordswoman’ you’ve nurtured over the past six months will shatter away, not even leaving a body to be honored._

For now, however, this ‘strong swordswoman’ was who she was. She carried on as the Vice Commander of the Knights of the Blood Oath, the stark general she needed to be.

She wondered, at times, if, perhaps, she didn’t take this position for the protection of others, but for herself. Maybe, without the burden of others’ lives draped over her back, her psyche would crumble down like a puny sand castle against crashing waves. This enormous pressure was the only thing holding her together; a single strand carrying limitless weight.

It’s hard remembering, sometimes, that she’s merely a girl.

**

Whenever Asuna strode down the corridors of her guild’s hall, a steely mask of fortitude resting upon her face, rounds of weary faces passed through her. Faces used to strife and loss.

Such faces were what she had grown used to.

As such, she couldn’t help but be taken aback when that brown-haired girl flashed her the most genuine smile she’d seen in her time in Aincrad.

“Welcome to Lisbeth’s Smith Shop!”

Asuna wandered through the merchant district of Ralberg in the 19thFloor in search of someone who could reinforce her new rapier. Before she knew it, she had been engulfed by the place, the bumping and rustling of moving cargo and the bustling voices of shoppers and vendors disorienting her until she was lost.

As she aimlessly roamed through one of the alleys within the district, darting her eyes through the passing figures and stray vendors in the narrow passage, she caught sight of this girl.

She seemed to be about Asuna’s age. She sat with her legs crossed, a short anvil and a petite hammer in front of her. Her face donned a hint of freckles, along with lively copper eyes adorned by an equally lively smile.

Approaching her, the swordswoman lowered her head towards her. Brushing some strands of brown hair behind her ear, the blacksmith raised hers in kind.

“How can I help you today?” the brown-haired girl asked, gesturing to the plain carpet in front of her, along with the diminutive hammer and anvil resting on top of it. Asuna wasn’t sure if that could be called a ‘shop’.

“Oh. Uh, yes,” she mumbled out in reply, instinctively forcing her voice into a lower pitch. Recovering her focus, Asuna unsheathed her rapier from its scabbard, a faint gleam reflecting from it. “I’m looking for someone who could reinforce this.”

The blacksmith raised her hand, and Asuna hesitantly rested her sword onto it. As per usual, she had grown oddly attached to a weapon.

The seated girl swiped her right index finger down and selected the Item Appraisal option, a small, semi-transparent window popping over the weapon with the action.

“I generally go to this other guy for reinforcing, but… it’s been hard to contact him lately.”

The implication in Asuna’s comment sent shivers down the blacksmith’s spine. Her voice cracked a bit, but she continued to smile regardless.

“Sure, that uh, that shouldn’t be a problem!”

The blacksmith started to perform the usual reinforcement procedure, and Asuna watched intently as she did, as if to inspire (or perhaps shame?) her own blade into succeeding.

The copper-haired girl struck the metal exactly ten times, and both sighed in relief as the sword was set back in Asuna’s hand, a small notification with a plus sign popping from it as the green light surrounding it faded. The swordswoman had to suppress the urge to flourish her improved weapon right then and there.

As she navigated the menus to transfer the necessary money and prepared to leave, Asuna remembered the shop’s name contained its owner’s as well.

“I’ll see you later… Lisbeth.”

“Please do!”

Lisbeth’s reply came out louder than intended, catching both of them off guard. The seated girl didn’t notice the words leaving her mouth until they were already blabbered away.

To be more precise, she hadn’t noticed how lonely she’d been.

“… I mean, if you need another enhancement, I’d be glad to have you as a customer again!”

Lisbeth positioned a proud hand over a thin bicep, as if to exude confidence.

Asuna had to hold back a chuckle at her words. She couldn’t help but relate to the brown-haired girl’s struggle.

She gave the blacksmith a curt nod before leaving. “Later.”

**

 _“Later_.” Promising to come back to someone in Aincrad was rarely a good idea when you were stationed in the front lines. Asuna knew that. She didn’t know what came to her.

Yet, she did see her later.

She came back multiple times, in fact– whenever she had some extra Col for another enhancement, whenever she wanted to show the “shop” to a guildmate, whenever she could make up another excuse to go. Soon enough, she started coming just because, and most of the time not spent with the guild or the broody solo player she’s taken a liking to was allocated to Lisbeth.

Asuna couldn’t pinpoint what drew her to the blacksmith.

She had a cheerfulness that waltzed between genuine and forged, and a bluntness that rivaled a certain someone else she knew. Asuna’s rank as a member of one of the clearing guilds made people talk to her with a tone of reverence at times (the flashy title of  _Lightning_  didn’t suit her, she thinks), so having another person she could speak to so casually felt satisfying. Despite her first impressions, Lis could be… rather crude.

They stood there, conversation wasted away for hours now.

“Ah,” Lis sighs, crossing her arms, “I really thought I was done for then. His sword’s durability hit zero the moment my hammer touched it, and he thought that was  _my_ fault, somehow.” She tapped the surface of her Smith’s Carpet. “It’s a good thing no one can touch you while you’re on one of these things. He did say he was going to get back at me, though.”

She pshaws.

“People here love saying stuff like that to merchants. Guess they see us as NPCs, or something. Figure we’re not  _real_  people.”

Cities are safe zones, and as such no one should be in mortal danger inside them. Nonetheless, vengeful people can get crafty in here. A threat is no laughing matter.

“Lis, that sounds… dangerous. Are you sure you’re safe?”

Lis waves a hand dismissively, and forges an especially bright smile for Asuna. She pshaws again.

“Don’t worry about it, Asuna. It’s not like  _they’re_  real anything either.”

This wasn’t the first time she’s noticed Lis making light of awful happenings and players surrounding her; she does it with near death experiences and creepy customers and disastrous blacksmithing attempts that invalidated days of work looking for materials. She turned her tragedies into comedies, always forcing herself to smile doing so.

In fact, she doesn’t remember ever seeing Lis legitimately sad in their time together. She always wore her smiting smith grin, or some variation of smirk.

“I mean…”

Asuna paused, pensively.

 _Lis, are you really okay?_ is what she thought about asking, but perhaps that was Lisbeth’ way of dealing with all of… this. Aincrad and the constant threat of death and missing her family and even the people she might have lost here.

If this place isn’t real, then the people within it aren’t real.

By extension, her pain, too, was non-existent. That seemed to be Lis’s thought process.  

Was it wrong, if it allowed her to smile?

_Unlike me, she…_

Perhaps a bit too forcefully, she choked out a chuckle for Lis’ reply.

“… Fine, fine,” she gave up, tapping the freckled girl’s shoulder, “but promise me you’ll let me help you look for a new base of operations for your business. I think it’s about time you got a better place.”

“Haha… there  _is_ this one place I’ve been eyeing in one of the upper floors,” Lis confessed, scratching the back of her neck, “but the price is pretty hefty.”

Asuna squinted her eyes, anguished hearing Lisbeth’s plea.  

“… I’ll make my entire squadron commission something from you if that’s what it takes.”

Lis couldn’t help but chortle out at Asuna’s uncharacteristic comment.

“What? I’m serious!”

“No, you’re not!” Lis retorted through jovial, watery eyes.

She patted Asuna’s head, which made her shoot a look Lis couldn’t tell was meant to be embarrassed or indignant.

“… But it’s really cute that you’d say something like that.”

**

The months go by and Asuna doesn’t think as much about dying.

She’s a general and she’s a swordswoman, but she’s also a mere girl– a fact a year of this death game forced her to forget. She thinks there’s nothing 'mere' about it now, however.

The pressure crushing her soul into moving forward, jaw clenched and nails digging into palms, is replaced with the warm push of her friends. With Kirito’s eyeroll-inducing antics. Argo’s impetuous comments. Lisbeth’s crude laughter. It surprises her, how this kindness motivates her far better than the looming anxiety. How she can live for the sake of living.

She doesn’t know when, but she knows.

She’s leaving this castle, and she’s taking those dear to her in tow.

**

The door creaked as Asuna slowly entered Lisbeth’s new shop. She was glad Lis managed to get this place without her having to resort to strong-arming her guildmates. Regardless of Lisbeth’s incredulity, she  _was_  serious about it… probably.

“Lisbeth!” She beckons, trying to warn the blacksmith of her presence. No response comes and she realizes why after a quick investigation: muffled clanks of steel meeting iron ring out from the backroom, and the spinning of the gigantic waterwheel resounds through the entire building. Lis must be hard at work.

She walks to the door behind the counter, whispering excuses under her breath as she ducks under the wooden seam. Surely enough, Lisbeth is hammering away at her anvil, the chime of weapons reverberating through the room.

Asuna barely caught sight of Lisbeth shivering as she approached.

“… Lis?”

Lisbeth turns to her, a grin on her lips and red on her eyes.

“Asuna!” she exclaims, voice sniffly, with a hint of surprise. It doesn’t sound how Asuna remembers. “Sorry, didn’t hear you coming in. Here for the materials?”

Asuna’s brow knits in worry. “Lis, were you crying?”

“I – what –” Lis stammers, then sets a hand to her eye. “Really? They programmed puffy eyes in this stupid game?”

Lis scoots her chair back as Asuna steps closer, her gloved hand brushing roughly against the corner of her eyes.

“Sorry, I’m–, I didn’t want you to have to see me like this. Don’t worry. I’m fine!”

“Lis…”

“I’m fine, I promise, just. Just give me a couple of minutes and I’ll be back to normal.”

“Lis, please.”

Asuna approaches slowly, hands outstretched. She offers them to Lis, who takes a step back before taking two forward.

She takes Asuna’s hands in hers, and the stream of tears she had stifled moments ago start racing down her cheeks again.

Lisbeth slumps over Asuna, her forehead resting over the swordswoman’s shoulder, her arms wrapping tightly around Asuna. Right now Lis feels so delicate, looks so frail, so unlike Asuna has ever seen her until now, and every part of her being wants to protect her.

A part of her knew Lis was keeping it in – who isn’t, in Aincrad? But seeing Lisbeth, her ever-cheery, best friend Lisbeth, crying in loneliness as she shakily continues to perform her work, clicks with Asuna. That’s what she was like, before meeting her.

_Why wasn’t I there for her in the same way?_

“I’m not sure how long I can keep doing this,” Lisbeth confesses. “Waking up every day and acting like this is normal. Like this is my job, like this is real, like my body isn’t wasting away outside.”

Lisbeth uses the forbidden word,  _outside,_ the one no one is meant to be using here to keep their sanity in check. In that moment Asuna realizes she is not simply talking to Lisbeth the Blacksmith, but to whoever Lisbeth is in the real world.

“I wish I was like you, Asuna. You’re so strong.”

It sends Asuna reeling. Lisbeth? Like her?

“What are you talking about? You are much stronger than me. You’ve kept smiling this whole time.”

She parts the locks of hair at Lis’ nape with her nails, and feels Lis’ grasp tighten.

“I’ve only been able to stand this long because I had people who reminded me I was still living in here. People like you, Lis. Your smile kept me going.”

For a moment, Lis simply digs her weight further into Asuna, the flutter of fanning eyelashes brushing against Asuna’s shoulder, streaming tears running down her arm.

When Lis’s crying subsides and she raises her head, Asuna sees that she’s smiling.

This one looks different, however. Time seems to stop as Asuna studies every inch of Lis’s face. She can tell as she sees the real thing in this moment, how Lisbeth’s winning smiles in the past were forged, a convincing replica fabricated by an expert craftswoman. This weary image in front of her now, with its displayed teeth and reddening skin and baggy eyes, is Lisbeth in her earnest, and it’s breathtakingly beautiful.

Time runs once more as Asuna sees Lisbeth’s face shorten the gap between hers, eyes half-lidded, approach slow and pleading.

It only lasts a mere moment, a fraction of a second, when their lips meet, but Asuna’s heart bursts all the same. It was more of a peck than a kiss, and yet she’s burning and Lisbeth’s burning and she’s not sure what this means, so she goes for seconds to find out, a chaste first kiss shared between two friends, pure affection woven into action.

Lis sets her head back on Asuna’s shoulder once they part lips.

“Nothing here ever had felt real, you know,” Lis starts. “Until you started talking to me. Visiting me. Thank you, Asuna.”

She interweaves their hands together, and Asuna squeezes them in response.

She can’t believe she let Lisbeth feel this way, so lonely.

She wouldn’t make the same mistake again.

**

She’s a general. She’s a swordswoman.  

She’s a girl, young and wise, frail and powerful, and so, so real.

They share a bed, their combined warmth reminding them how genuine they are.

These bodies, countless shards of light interlinked through a virtual thread, are mere representations of themselves. But how can they be called fake, when it allows them to be like this, more intimate than they’ve ever been with any other person in the real world?

Lis fell asleep as soon as her body met the bed. How long has it been since she last had a night of sleep? How long has she been forging that smile that inspired her so many times? Asuna, however, cannot bring herself to drift off, not after the way she saw Lisbeth today.

She spent a long while wondering what she was fighting for, since her entrapment. Holding her friend delicately, caressing her head as she basks in Lis’s droopy, drowsy smile, Asuna thinks she found one of many answers to the question.

As she watched Lis shift in bed, murmuring something unintelligible, her steely resolve became something beyond a mask. An earnest, warm wish solidified itself over her heart.

She would protect that smile.

**Author's Note:**

> I was motivated to do this one from rewatching Lisbeth's character episode. Lisbeth says something along the lines of "the warmth of Kirito's hand was the first thing that felt real in that virtual world," and I always thought that sounded like a bit off considering... Asuna was right there, and we already know they were physically affectionate from their interactions. I think it both downplays the meaning of their friendship while also ignoring that Lis could just as well develop feelings for Asuna, if that was the case, so I wanted to take a stab at Asuna/Lisbeth around that time in the story. Hopefully this should make for an enjoyable read.
> 
> Anyway, thanks for reading! Kudos and comments are deeply appreciated.


End file.
